If You Can Hear Me...

You’ve probably heard the familiar chant many educators use to regain attention from a noisy class: “If you can hear me, clap once. If you can hear me, clap twice.” A trainer who visited our district recently had a variation that’s worked well for me. “If you can hear me, clap once” is always the first line. But the second line is more specific and requires some thinking, like “If you can hear me, clap 4 minus 2” or “If you can hear me, clap the amendment that prohibits unreasonable search and seizure” (for high school history classes) or “If you can hear me, clap how many legs a biped has.” You can pick any topic – vocabulary, content knowledge, pop culture references, etc. – but I highly recommend that you prep these topics and statements ahead of time, so you’re not standing at the front of the room struggling to find words, “If you can hear me, clap.... uh...”

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